Frank James Lampard OBE is an English former professional footballer and kids’s writer. He is the all-time leading goalscorer for Chelsea, where he played for 13 years, and is thought about by a variety of journalists and football specialists to be among the greatest midfielders of his generation, in addition to being considered Chelsea’s greatest ever player by some Chelsea players, such as previous record goal-scorer Bobby Tambling and long-lasting colleague John Terry.

Lampard began his career at West Ham United, for whom his father Frank Lampard, Sr. had also played. He secured a place in the first string by the 1997– 98 season, and the following year helped the team finish fifth in the Premier League, their highest-ever Premier League positioning. In 2001, he relocated to match London club Chelsea for ₤ 11 million. In 2014, he was released by Chelsea after 13 years of service. Lampard then joined New York City FC on a two-year deal, in preparation for the club’s Major League Soccer (MLS) debut in 2015, as a free transfer, but would play for Manchester City in the meantime. On 31 December 2014, nevertheless, BBC Sport’s David Ornstein exposed Lampard is under contract to Manchester City and not New York City as previously declared by both clubs.

From his debut, Lampard was ever-present in the Chelsea first team and made 164 consecutive Premier League appearances, a record for an outfield player. He established himself as a prolific scorer at the west London club and was a key part of the sides which won back-to-back Premier League titles in 2004– 05 and 2005– 06 and a domestic cup double in 2007. He signed a brand-new contract in 2008, ending up being the highest-paid Premier League footballer at that time, and scored in his first Champions League Final that year. He won a second FA Cup winners’ medal in 2009, scoring the winning goal in the last. In the 2009– 10 season, Lampard helped Chelsea protect their first league and FA Cup Double, as well as had his most respected season with the club, scoring 22 league goals and 17 league assists. In 2012, Lampard captained Chelsea to their first UEFA Champions League success and a year later to their first UEFA Europa League title. He was released by the club after the 2013– 14 season.

A three-time Chelsea Player of the Year, Lampard is the club’s all-time top goalscorer with 211 goals in all competitions. Lampard is one of seven players, and the only midfielder, to have scored 150 or more goals in the Premier League. He is second in the Premier League’s all-time assists table, behind Ryan Giggs. In 2005, Lampard was voted FWA Footballer of the Year and was runner-up in both the FIFA World Player of the Year and the Ballon d’Or. In 2010, he received the FWA Tribute Award. He has won 13 prizes in his career.

Internationally, Lampard was topped 106 times by England since his debut in October 1999, and scored 29 global goals. He was voted England Player of the Year for two successive years in 2004 and 2005. He played in Euro 2004, where he was named in the team of the competition after scoring 3 goals in four games. He was top scorer for England in their 2006 World Cup certifying project with five goals, and played at 3 World Cups. He is England’s most respected penalty taker with nine goals, going beyond the previous record holders, Ron Flowers and Alan Shearer.

Since December 2015, he has been married to television presenter Christine Bleakley. Lampard currently works as a team captain on the ITV sport panel show Play to the Whistle.